What is the right career fit for me?
Situation
When Rebecca came to JMA, she had been a consultant in a Fortune 500 firm and was on the cusp of becoming a partner. This was a goal she had coveted for years and had worked very, very hard to achieve. At this juncture, she should have been thrilled. She was anything but. She had a gnawing terror that she was not only in the wrong industry, but also in the wrong job.
While her outward success was the envy of many, Rebecca was miserable and anxious. She hired Jody Michael Associates because of this deep dissatisfaction with her career and her lack of clarity around what actually would be a “good fit.”
Resolution
The assessment process yielded two pieces of valuable information. First, despite Rebecca’s success, it did seem likely that she was in the wrong job. It was a poor fit given her strengths, values and abilities. Second, Rebecca was out of sorts in more areas of her life than just her career. So, it was no surprise that she was anxious and experiencing such dissatisfaction in her life. It was a classic example of a typical JMA client: a high-functioning, low-satisfaction working adult.
Our approach was two-pronged. The first priority was to find the right career fit for Rebecca. We began to build an individualized, proprietary Career Matrix that would give us important metrics about Rebecca and fit.
While we were working in session to build that component, we assigned her homework to complete outside of session using our JMA Career RoadMap series. All the while, we coached, directed exercises, gathered data, gave out-of-session assignments, and led in-session processes. Most importantly, we moved Rebecca from a state of confusion to knowledge much more quickly than if she was attempting this on her own. We say this with confidence because we see it over and over again. Clients, on their own, waste valuable time and “spin their wheels” in a manner that ends up producing heightened anxiety, not career clarity.
Within three months of our initial engagement, Rebecca was delighted that she had a clear and unwavering career choice. As we uncovered it, she was shocked to discover that “she always knew.” It was a longing that she had shoved aside for years in her ambitious, dogged pursuit of a partner position at her firm.
With career out of the way, we could tackle the other area in life that was impacting her happiness. For this focused work, JMA assigned Rebecca exercises that allowed her to probe her dysfunctional beliefs; to uncover her self-imposed rules; to learn about how she had come to be the high-functioning, low-satisfaction working adult that she was; and, most importantly, to create actionable steps to get new results.
Outcome
She saw results quickly. She writes, “Working with Jody, I have been able to tap into my authentic self and begin living my life for me, not for my family, and not based on what others expected of me.” In the subsequent work that we did, Rebecca completely turned her life around.
The shifts she made enabled her to discover the people and livelihood that fulfilled and refueled her. She began dating and relating to men in a new way that helped her quickly find her life partner (they are now married). She also became a new observer of herself and others, which allowed her to navigate the world more effectively to obtain the results she was after. And in the arena of career, she joyously left the Fortune 500 firm before she made partner and landed employment in her new targeted profession.
“I cannot remember another time in my life when I have been this happy and at one with myself. … I am starting to feel things that I haven’t ever allowed myself to feel.” – Rebecca
Please note: The names of clients, their employers and certain identifying details have been changed to respect their privacy and maintain confidentiality.